A collaboration between longtime friends
Dominic Greensmith (the drummer for Glastonbury Brit-poppers
Reef) and singer/songwriter Gareth Hale,
Admission (and
the Black Swan Effect) grew out of scoring sessions for a documentary directed by
Greensmith's wife, Heidi. Steeped in the overcast alt-rock of
OK Computer-era
Radiohead, the wounded midnight rock & roll posturing of
Jeff Buckley, and the propulsive swagger of
Kings of Leon, the group's Real World Records debut (
Peter Gabriel signed them after hearing an early demo) has atmosphere to spare, and while it may be a bit too beholden to its influences to turn heads more than a few degrees, it bristles with enough nervy energy and musical acumen to possibly pull in fans of modern day mood-casters like
Alt-J,
Everything Everything, and
the xx. ~ James Christopher Monger